Pumki's Interlude: Pepe's Thoughts
by Cabba
Summary: Percy goes back to Devon, to see how his friends are holding up. (Harry's not holding up.) Part of the Pumki series. Interlude between Power and the subsequent installment.


**Jeez. I lost my thought process for this series. Wasn't sure where to start. But, here we go.**

 **Warning: Mentions of depression, panic, and insanity. A suicidal wish (slightly different).**

* * *

Summer was supposed to be warm, not sweltering. Percy blamed global warming.

The Weasleys had the right idea of spending the afternoon in the lake, half a click from their house. The Burrow was one of the houses in which Harry was allowed to stay. If Percy needed to meet him, he had to inform the Order of his arrival. He had to go through security checks.

The caution hadn't abated after months, since the hospital had burned down. Percy remembered the utter chaos that had settled over the Wizarding community, barely soothed by the International Confederation of Wizards' claims to assign greater powers to the Auror department in the UK.

Public panic had risen for weeks, till the New Year, after which new rules were implemented, safety was priority, and access to the smaller clinics was encouraged through all avenues. So far, the country was in a quivering state of balance. Everyone was afraid things would tip over soon.

Everyone was afraid Voldemort would come back.

Percy remembered the evening Hagrid had come back. The urgent Order meeting that had taken place in the Burrow. The meeting that had finally allowed Fred and George to sit in. The meeting where Ron had stolen the Extendable Ears from the twins' room.

Ginny had been silent, as usual. While Harry, Ron, and Neville listened with rapt attention, Percy multitasked. He listened in, learning what Hagrid told the Order, and watched Ginny's ticks.

If he hadn't seen it himself, Percy wouldn't have believed that little Ginny Weasley had been able to create hell fire. Her magic had devastated St. Mungo's. The hospital had stood there for more than 400 years. The fire had ravaged the rooms and the floors had crumbled into charred ruin. Three survivors out of the four that had been left right before the fire had struck.

If there had been any real casualty, Percy guessed that Ginny might have been kept in confinement. As it were, there had been public outcry about her abilities. People were afraid of her.

Ginny was terrified.

Her security detail was about as extensive as Harry's. It helped that her older brothers, Bill and Charlie, had come back to the country. Bill was good with fire, having a version of that Core magic. Charlie, having handled dragons on a daily basis, knew exactly how to help with dangerous magic. Ginny trusted them too, which was a hopeful deal, because it was obvious (at least to Percy) that she didn't trust herself.

Hagrid was talking about the Giants. Percy wondered if there were Giants in Ancient Greek mythology. Yeah, but they were the immortal kind, right? Older than the Titans. He was just glad that they weren't _those_ Giants. The witches and wizards could handle them.

Percy's eyes slid back to Ginny. Her lips were pressed together and her hands curved over the railing. Ron was levitating one end of the Extendable Ear up make sure the voices came out in a clear fashion. Ginny wasn't staring at the ear, but rather into the middle distance, head bowed, eyebrows furrowed.

He wondered how she'd dealt with the memories of Tom recurring through her nightmares. Had they faded away over time? Could he hope for the same?

"That's it, then? The Giants are on … _their_ side?" Neville whispered. Percy realized that Hagrid had finished explaining his adventures.

"Moony is yet to come." Harry answered. Even Ron winced at the decrepit hope in his voice.

Harry had… changed. He seemed quieter. Quick to frustration and anger. Percy remembered him nearly breaking down after they'd come back from DJ's wake. He'd never seen Harry cry in public like that.

There was also that physical difference. He almost always wore gloves. Percy remembered the first few days, when he'd refused to take them off. Harry had been adamant to cover every inch of skin that he could. Barring the face, he was protected by cloth. During the harsh winter, no one objected it.

But the heat was hitting them, and even with whatever temperature controlling charm was cast in the Burrow, summer was apparent, and everyone wore regular clothes, mostly t-shirts and shorts if they didn't venture out.

Harry wore a _jacket_ and full length trousers, complete with the socks and gloves. Percy felt sweaty, just staring at him.

The teens heard Dumbledore explain about a Death Eater sighting in Italy. Percy gripped the banister, eyes shooting towards Harry and then Ginny.

She was staring back at him.

Percy immediately looked down, tracing his gaze over the thin fleshy string of the Extendable Ear. He could tell that her scrutiny was short lived, when the heat of her sight moved away within seconds. He was going to pay for that.

"They're done!" Ron hissed, suddenly yanking up the string. The other end flew up, the entire thing nearly flying out of his hands. Harry caught it and wrapped it over his wrist as they rushed back up the stairs to gather in Ron's room.

It was nearly three in the afternoon when Sally came back with her entourage.

Percy was only at the house because Sally had to be in the UK for a check-up. Nearly eight months pregnant, a doctor at a mortal hospital in Queens had advised bed rest since she had suffered quite a lot of stress, especially during her first trimester.

Sally had denied needing any kind of rest, still working from home. Rosalie had to come and convince her to at least get a second opinion before ignoring the doctor's orders.

Armed to the hilt, Tonks, and a few Aurors accompanied Sally to a local clinic, recommended by Harry's healer, Sierra Calles. Percy had decided against going with her, since that would only up the frustration levels. Especially since there were rumours all through the country that Percy Jackson was not human. A status that was usually met with derision.

That was complemented with a second, more flashy rumour that Harry and Percy were dating. In the past six months, Harry had only ever been out in public once. He'd been to Gringotts to withdraw some gold. Percy had gone with him (as though they hadn't needed any more antagonism from the Goblins). The two had been escorted by the Aurors in and out, very swiftly since there were several eyes watching their every move.

Percy had never though he'd be the subject of celebrity nitty gritties. The headlines next day alluded to a steamy relationship. That had been the first time Ginny had laughed since December. So, something good had come out of that outing.

Sally and Molly sat in the kitchen, hashing out small details of the living situation. Percy knew that the Order wanted her to stay in New York, since that would keep her safe from the Death Eaters. Sirius was still in his coma, though Sierra was confident that he would wake up in a few months.

But Percy wanted her to move away from NYC, since they were so close to August. He alternated between staying at Camp and at home. Seeing as how tensions were rising on the East coast, he didn't want his mother anywhere near potential full out battles.

When Rosalie suggested that she move into the Cullens' smaller estate near the Scotland border (quite close to their abandoned house, Frost) Sally had seemed amiable.

Harry was not happy.

"It's still not safe," He insisted.

Sally shook her head, reaching for his hand, but Harry pulled away, leaving the room to exit the house.

Everyone was on high alert, the moment the door swung close, but Arthur held up a hand, checking Harry's progress. Percy stood up and found him walk towards the Weasleys' kitchen garden, grab one of the sulking gnomes to toss it into the air, several feet away from the house.

"Let him vent," Arthur told Sally, who only sat down, looking more weary.

Percy kneeled down to kiss Sally's temple, shooting her a quick smile. He walked out the back door and slowed his steps, yanking a gnome by the feet.

Harry frowned. "There are other countries in the world. If she can't stay in the States or here –"

"Mom shouldn't be alone." Percy said, swinging the gnome like how Ron had shown him once. He let go off its feet and watched it fly, farther than Harry's first throw.

"Portkeys, floo networks, apparation." Harry said. "The world is open."

"She'll be safe with Rosalie –"

"The Cullens have houses in other places!"

"She wants to see you!" Percy said and then sighed. "You have limits, Harry."

"I know." Harry sounded bitter. "I know I can't go anywhere except for the Burrow, Rosalie's place, and Dumbledore's house. It's mind numbing. I can't do this anymore. I need to get out!"

Percy caught another gnome, trying to dismantle his unorganized thoughts. Harry was right on that. No one liked house arrest, which was what Harry was basically facing. Even though he hadn't been attacked or targeted during that Gringotts trip, Dumbledore had been reluctant to send him anywhere. Harry had barely seen another face in person. If it hadn't been for the two-way mirror and the floo, Percy knew that Harry would have rebelled.

"Nothing's happened for months," Percy said. "May be you can convince him to let you out for a bit."

Harry grimaced. "Yeah… that's gonna be difficult. See, I broke out a couple of weeks ago."

Percy groaned. "You what!? You… Harry!"

"I just had a thought –"

"Yeah! I know how you get when you 'have a thought'!" Percy argued. "What was so important this time?"

Both boys stilled for a bit. The gnomes were squealing. The sun was beating down on them. Percy couldn't wait to go back in and check if he had tan lines more distinct than Annabeth's. Harry must have put a cooling charm on his jacket, because there was no other reason for his non-melted state.

"I was looking through elemental magic, mostly about the previous witches and wizards who had that power. I came across something that made me guess as to Voldemort's location."

Location?

"As in…" Percy began. "Voldemort's horcruxes, or the man himself?"

Ever since the Order discovered the ruined shells of his horcruxes in the debris of St. Mungo's, there had been the softest of hope, spreading through the ranks. Voldemort had lost four pieces of his soul in one fell swoop, thanks to Ginny. The next goal had been to find the rest of them.

That didn't detract from their other goal of actually locating the army.

"Voldemort." Harry said, keeping a steady pace in his words as he swung another gnome to launch it into the air.

"Where?"

"Azkaban."

Percy was so surprised, he let go of his squalling gnome in the wrong direction. The creature flew up behind them, crashing right through the attic window of the crooked house.

They stared up at the house in stunned silence, till Harry whispered, "You need to improve your aim, Percy. Honestly."

"The ghoul up there won't be so alone now."

Harry almost smiled. Percy swore it. The corner of his lips had tilted up for a fraction of a second.

If they could make Ginny laugh, he should be able to get a smile out of Harry.

Harry ducked his head, frowning immediately, like he'd been caught in a wrong doing. "How's camp?"

"Good. We're… training every day, searching for recruits… wait. No, we were talking about Voldemort being in Azkaban!"

"It's a guess." Harry hedged. "It's perfect, because we've been hearing a lot about the dementors being restless and patrolling in longer arcs around the island, covering more area than they should. Many of Voldemort's oldest and most loyal supporters are in there. Snape keeps saying that he's spends a lot of time in Occlumency sessions."

Sessions? Percy mouthed the word. All he could picture now was Voldemort sitting quietly on a yoga mat, cross legged, meditating.

"I spoke to Cedric and Zack. They let me look over the prison system's blue prints." Harry explained.

"Did it confirm anything?"

Harry looked back at the house. "Not really. Only my original theory about the security around the building failing. I told Dumbledore. I'll have to wait to see what he does, though. Because apparently, Sirius's command about locking me out of the Order until I'm seventeen was very real."

Percy pressed the base of his palms to his eyelids. "Gods."

"I know." Harry muttered. "You're going off to fight a war, I'm not allowed to fight a war. And I'm older than you, so how does that work?"

They'd had this conversation, so Percy didn't want to get angry again. "Do you want to just complain, or do you want an actual answer?"

"Complain."

"Whiner."

Harry gripped his gnome and it squealed so high that both boys jumped. The gnome scratched at his hand, nearly tearing at the glove. With a fierce yank, it pulled the glove entirely from Harry's palm, leaving two gouges right by his wrist. The gnome dropped to the ground, quickly scattering towards one of the holes.

Harry swore, clutching his wrist to examine the damage. "Sodding claws!"

Percy picked up the glove that had fallen, reaching forwards to catch Harry hand. The moment they made skin contact, Harry stiffened, shutting his eyes, face going pale. Percy looked at him with concern. "What? Is it deep? It doesn't look – "

"Annabeth or Clarisse?"

Percy blinked. "Eh?"

Harry said, "Did Annabeth beat your arse at sparring or did Clarisse wipe the floor with you on the wrestling mats?"

Percy gaped at him. "Annabeth… yeah, she judo flipped me. How –"

"You sprained your ankle and pulled a muscle just below your left shoulder."

Harry opened his eyes, but all Percy could think of was how in the world the wizard could tell exactly what injuries he had suffered in the morning. He _had_ sparred with Annabeth, and she _had_ beat him after a stringent three minute fight.

"Did you talk to someone at camp?" Percy's question was almost rhetorical, because it was obvious that something else was at play here.

Harry frowned at him, pulling his hand away from Percy's grip. Percy could see the skin of his knuckles turn red, not because of the gnome's scratch or the sun's heat.

"I could… I can tell." Harry snatched his glove from Percy, putting it on with a flustered grace.

"But I'd had nectar. I'd healed –"

"I can still tell if it was recent or really bad."

Percy stared as Harry turned away, unable to meet his gaze.

"Harry… how long have you been able to tell?"

He didn't answer. Percy didn't look away, trying to think back to a time when Harry hadn't flinched so much against another's touch. He had always been touch sensitive.

But Harry had first worn the gloves at the funeral, six months ago.

"It's been a while." Harry's whisper was painful to hear. "I don't have full control it. I'm trying. It's just easier to cover up."

And despite the anger that rushed up (because why didn't Harry tell anyone? Why didn't he ask people for help? They could help him, Percy could find a way to help him. Why didn't he just ask?), Percy said, "What helps you?"

"Luna suggested Occlumency. I didn't exactly tell her about this, just about not being able to control magic subsets. And I already do have Occlumency trials every night. It only does so much."

"Pain numbing potions?" Percy asked. "You said those exist."

"Those potions are meant for mortal injuries. Sierra used a bit for Sirius, and only in the beginning. I can't take that every day."

"Have you told Mantis about this?"

Healer Mantis, Harry's therapist, came over to the house every Saturday. Percy had to believe it helped, since Harry had stopped punching mirrors. A habit he'd developed at the worst times of his life.

Harry shook his head. Percy had to take a step back to stop from yelling.

"Dude. If you don't tell people, we can't help you."

"I'm not asking for help."

"Then how d'you think this is gonna get fixed?"

"I'll figure it out."

Percy stared. "On your own?"

"I'm good at that."

If there was ever a time Percy would want to swear, it was now. Harry walked past him to grab the last gnome, the one that had scratched him. It had poked its potato shaped head out, obviously filled with morbid curiosity.

"I have all the time in the world to figure it out." Harry said, swinging the gnome. "If I'm going to live forever –"

"Wouldn't it be better to figure it out now, by telling all your friends who are ready to help you? So that you won't have to live in pain for another second?"

The fury was palpable. Harry launched the gnome far beyond the tree stump in the distance. It hit the ground with an audible thump. Percy wondered if it was dead, but breathed a sigh of relief when it moved, trying to stand on shaky legs.

"You want me to dump another problem on our heads? As if our lives aren't problematic enough?"

"You want to live in pain forever?"

"I can fix it."

"Have you?"

Harry glared at him. "I figured it out. Dying makes me stronger. I wake up with enhanced reach of my magic. Which isn't has fun as it sounds."

"So, what's your way out?" Percy folded his arms.

Harry shrugged, "If you want to hold my hand, you're gonna have to be in no pain. You need to calm down and be as relaxed as possible. If you have a splinter, I'll know. If you have a paper cut, I'll know. If your appendix is about to burst, I'll know."

"I'm not hurt now." Percy pointed out. "You still felt the damage from hours ago."

"Which means it'll be better this time." Harry took off the glove again, holding his hand out for Percy to take. His palm was facing up and Percy could see a soft glow of green dancing over his skin.

Percy dropped his arms, shaking them to cool himself. He breathed slow and steady, trying to settle down. The day's heat was the only thing bothering him.

He lifted a hand and took Harry's palm. There was no grimace or grunt from the wizard.

If Percy thought it would feel awkward holding Harry's hand, he was wrong. They simply stood there, waiting for the pain to overwhelm them. Nothing happened.

"Good." Harry said, looking relieved.

The green magic floated by Percy's knuckles and wrist. It was soothing, taking away the heat of the sun.

"Harry." He said, hesitantly. "You know that I'll help… if you just ask."

The question stayed in the air till Harry answered, "I know. But you're busy. We don't have time for this, not when there are people who could actually die. And unlike us, none of them can come back."

Percy frowned, wanting to refute, but Harry continued, "I'm not saying… I mean. I don't want to argue."

He closed his eyes, shoulders slumped. "We can't stay dead. What does that make us?"

Percy watched the scowl on his face, heard the sorrow in his voice. This was something that had obviously been bothering him for a while. He wished Harry had spoken to him about this before. He had no idea what to say.

"We're going to watch everyone die." Harry said, when Percy didn't answer. "Everyone in that house, everyone in camp, all our friends… "

"Except Rachel." Percy muttered. His heart thumped. He could feel the fear sinking in. He wondered if Harry could feel that through the contact.

Harry gave a deprecating laugh. "Just so you know, Percy. If that does happen, if we live up to a thousand years, if everyone else dies, I'm going to go insane first. Fair warning. Tell Rachel that."

 _Don't think about it, don't think about it._

If Percy thought about it… he didn't want to imagine them dead. Annabeth and Grover, Clarisse, Will, Adam, Chiron. Everyone from camp. All the friends from Hogwarts. Mom. The baby.

Other than Cassandra, Iphigenia, and Ajax, they would know no one else after the centuries pass and even the Cullens wear out.

"How long have you been thinking about this?" Percy asked.

Harry swallowed. "Ever since my reflection began to laugh at me."

The problem with the mirrors was something Percy had never understood. Mostly because Harry refused to talk about it. Listening to him say that his own reflection was mocking his pain –

"I'll go mad like Ajax." Harry murmured.

"Not on my watch."

The words spilled out, unplanned but confident. It was loud and Harry looked up at him, eyes wide.

"Look," Percy said, thinking fast. Trying to come up with something that could get Harry out of his slump. "Ajax was mad when he was alive. His own army turned against him. All those stories… even his book, 'The Modern Demigod', you can tell that he just doesn't care about people! But you do! You honestly care! That's not going to drive you insane. It's gonna be painful, but not crazy. And unlike Ajax, you're not alone."

Percy lifted their hands, showing him a visible marker of the difference. "See this? Tell me the truth, do you think anyone ever held Ajax's hand like this? This odd, platonic, but may-be-confusing-not-platonic fashion?"

Harry waited, earnest in hearing Percy's words. There was hope in his face, and Percy smiled. "One more thing. Tell me a difference between the three of us and the three of them."

"Wh… what?" Harry said, thoroughly confused.

"You said that we're going to live forever, just like Cassandra, Iphigenia, and Ajax. Yeah, Thalia told me about them. No one else knows… but yeah, what's the difference between them and you, me, and Rachel?"

The fear dissipated. The green magic swirled around as Harry shook his head again, looking incredibly curious. The answer was right there.

Percy said, "They stopped ageing."

The silence was soft like spring in the English summer. Harry's eyes went impossible wide. He held Percy's hand tighter, turning his body to face him completely. "Oh my gods!"

Percy shrugged. "You said we died when we were five. Alright. We came back. Okay. And we grew. We're still doing that. We're still living. And… Rachel didn't die, yet she still got the armlet. It's different for us. The others, they're stuck in that age, twenties, thirties, whatever. Does that mean we're going to age like normal? I mean, you cut your hair on New Year's, it's still growing like a weed, all over the place. Jeez!"

Harry exhaled, smiling for real this time. It was exhilarating to see it. His short cropped hair had been practically a buzz cut in the first week of the new year, but it had grown, the locks straightening out as they lengthened

"You know how Annabeth described monsters?" Percy said, waiting for Harry to look up again. "She told me, on my first day at camp, she told me that monsters can't die. But they can be killed. So if we base the armlet's logic on that, we can't be killed…"

"… but, we can die," Harry finished. "You're losing your reputation of being a dumb demigod, Percy."

"That's a risk I'm willing to take when I need to set my bro straight." He yanked Harry in and dropped his other arm over his neck, pulling him for a noogie.

* * *

Dinner was early in the Burrow. Hagrid joined then, but not before an enthusiastic hug that had him practically lifting Harry, Neville, and Ginny off the floor. It reminded Percy of Tyson. Ron had been smart enough to show Hagrid to his chair and sit by him, so no rib crushing hug.

During the dinner, Percy whispered to Sally all he could about a plan to give Harry some space.

She said she'd think about it.

The next day, Sally told Harry that he could go with Rachel on her Caribbean vacation, without bodyguards. Percy didn't know how his mom could convince the Order to do that, but then again, she was an unstoppable force. Not even Snape could snap at her while she was eight months along.

* * *

 **Hermione's not here. I'll bring her back in the next story that'll be coming up soon. Either the coming Sunday or the Sunday after that. I'm on a time crunch.**

 **This one-shot is just a set up for the next part of the series. It actually refers to a previous one-shot I'd written a couple of years ago called** _ **Stalemates, Not.**_ **While some of the incidents in that story are invalid, since I've changed a lot in Power, most of the other parts apply to the Pumki series.**

 **Also, I'm giving Harry a boyfriend :)**

 **Q: Can you guess what I'm going to name the baby? I came up with the name before I knew Sally Jackson was pregnant in canon. So, I'm not naming the kid Estelle.**

 **Cabba.**


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